Story of the Fashion Week, the first one took place neither in Paris nor in Milan

In the fifth installment of the “Umbria Fashion” column, we talk about Fashion Week, a magical and extremely important period for those in the sector and for fashion show enthusiasts.

Fashion Week is an event in the fashion industry, lasting about a week, which allows designers and fashion houses to present their latest collections and the public to realize what the latest trends will be. The most important fashion weeks are those held in the fashion capitals: Milan, Paris, London and New York.

This glamorous event occurs twice a year: between January and February the fall/winter collections are shown, while between September and October the spring/summer collections are shown to the world. Then there are the Fashion Weeks that concern specific products: for example, Miami Fashion Week is dedicated to swimwear, while Portland Fashion Week is dedicated to eco-friendly fashion shows; while haute couture shows are mainly held in Paris, while bridal collections are usually presented in New York.

A bit of history

The first Fashion Week was held in New York in 1943 and was created with the aim of promoting local fashion to the detriment of French fashion, since it had become impossible to import clothes from Europe due to the Second World War. After the war, New York’s initiative was adopted by other capitals: Paris began organizing haute couture shows in 1945, then in 1973 it inaugurated the first Fashion Week; in London, Fashion Week was promoted by the British Fashion Council in 1984; while in Milan it arrived in 1958 thanks to the National Chamber of Fashion. Since the early 2000s they have spread to different parts of the world.

Traditionally, Fashion Weeks were held several months before the season to allow press and buyers to preview the designs: in February and March, designers would show their fall and winter collections, and in September and October, their spring and summer collections.
This timing was largely created to follow the then slower retail cycle, in other words, it allowed retailers to buy and incorporate designers into their retail marketing. Today, customer expectations have increased as has the retail cycle, and as a result, in 2016, designers began to transition to seasonal shows.

Fashion curiosities

Louis Vuitton takes an average of one week to make its iconic bags.
The name Jeans comes from Gênes, Genoa in French. The port from which the goods wrapped in this fabric came.
Tiffany’s trademark color, protected by copyright in nature, is the color of the eggs of an American variety of robin.
One carat corresponds to 200 mg.
A bottle of Chanel N°5 is sold every 30 seconds in the world.
If all the Havaianas sold in the world were lined up, they would go around the world 50 times.
A Hermès scarf is sold every 25 seconds in the world.
The average woman owns 30 pairs of shoes.